Automatic alarm check and guard



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 1. A. F. CARPENTER.

AUTOMATIC ALARM CHECK AND GUARD. No. 534,631. Patented Feb. 26, 1895.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

A. P. CARPENTER.

AUTOMATIC ALARM CHECK AND GUARD.

UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

ALBERT F. CARPENTER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR OF TVVO-THIRDS TO BENJAMIN KIMBALL, OF SAME PLACE, AND THE MANUFACTURERS AUTOMATIC SPRINKLER COMPANY, OF SYRACUSE, NEWV YORK.

AUTOMATIC ALARM CHECK AND GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 534,631, dated February 26, 1 895.

- Application filed May 31, 1894. Serial No. 513.013. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT F. CARPENTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented cer- 5 tain new'and useful Improvements in Automatic Alarm Checks and Guards, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

to My invention relates to certain newand useful improvements in automatic alarm cheeks and guards.

My improvements have reference to an alarm mechanism, and various mechanical I5 and electrical peculiarities of detail in construction and operation thereof; have reference to an automatic guard for said alarm mechanism, to prevent its accidental operation by the water-hammer, or hydraulic action of the water in the pipe system; have reference to an air chamber and break check valve forming said guard, whereby the water pressure is carried to the alarm check through an air chamber; and have reference to other points of construction and operation hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings on which like reference letters indicate corresponding parts, Figure 1 represents a vertical section 0 through an alarm check and its chamber and connecting pipes, and Fig. 2, a vertical central section through an alarm mechanism and its guard, with adjacent pipe connections to and from the same.

3 5 Factories, stores, and other places are often supplied with a pipe system connected to the city mains, or other sources of water supply, and furnished with automatic fire sprinklers at suitable points in the building. These sprinklers are automatically operated in case of fire,so as to discharge the Water at the dangerous point, but are often accidentally operated when there is no fire, by the waterhammer or hydraulic force of the water in some part of the pipe system, caused by producing a flow of water, and then closing the opening. It is one of the main objects of my invention to overcome this liability to false alarms when there is no fire, and to prevent the operation of the fire sprinkler when there is no call for its use, by relieving the alarm mechanism of the water-hammer above mentioned. Furtherpeculiaritiesin construction and detail will hereinafter appear in the description and be shown in the accompanying drawings.

Referring to Fig. 1, the letter A indicates the inlet pipe or water-gate connected to the Water-main, and the letter B, the lower end of the pipe leading to the pipe system carrying automatic devices, such as fire sprinklers, to distribute at suitable points the water supplied to said system. Between these two pipes, A, and B, is mounted my automatic alarm mechanism and adjunctive devices, adapted to give the alarm when one or more of said fire sprinklers, or other automatic devices, is actuated. The particular style of said sprinkler, or similar device, forms no part of my present invention, and is therefore, not shown or described.

W'ithin a casing C, communicating with the pipe B, is mounted an alarm check valve D, upon a pivot E at one side of the valve seat F in the bottom of the chamber, like a flat valve opening toward the pipe B. Upon the hub of the valve is a cam G adapted to throw outward an actuating pin H to force a contact spring I against the button J and complete the electric circuit between the battery K and an alarm gong L, or other indicator,

by the wires from the binding posts M M. The contact spring I is secured to one of said binding posts and is normally out of contact with the button J. An insulating cover 0 of gutta percha, or other suitable material, supports said binding posts, and is secured by screws, or otherwise, to the head of a chambered plug P screwed into the casing C. Vithin the chamber of said plug is mounted go a spring Q, coiled about the said pin ll. so as to force it inward and seat a flared portion 7b upon the inner end of the spring chamber. The other end of said chamber is closed by a gland R, which serves as a guide for the outer end of the contact pin. A lead packing ringr is seated on the inside of the gland of the said spring. An insulating cap S is mounted on said outer end, by which the pin contacts with the spring 1. Thus the electric current Ico is kept from the pipe system. In case of leakage of water past the valve h and gland R, it will find exit through an opening in the insulating cover, to prevent filling the said cover and thus making water connection between the spring and button, I, J, respectively.

The opening of any sprinkler, or other such device in the pipe system supplied through the pipe 13 above the alarm check, will relieve the water pressure therein and cause a current from the water main, which will raise the valve D, and actuate the alarm by the contact pin and electrical connections closed thereby.

it is to guard against unnecessary actuation of the alarm, of this or other suitable alarm mechanism, that I have provided a guard against the water-hammer before referred to. This graduating mechanism I have shown in Fig. 2. It consists, in this construction, of an air chamber and a break check valve interposed between the alarm mechanism and the supply pipe A. The air cushion is contained within a hemispherical casing T, in which it is maintained by the water delivered thereinto through a pipe extension U, extending upward, as shown in the drawings, nearly to an annular shelf V, projecting inward from the wall of the casing T. The water-blow is delivered by the pipe extension directly to the air cushion, and the reaction of the cushion upon the water in the chamber is, in part, resisted by the shelf V, and partly by the mouth of the pipe U, which is nearly the size of the opening formed by the annular shelf. The little remaining proportion of the water-blow finds its way between the edge of the shelf and the pipe extension into the neck T of the casing, and is resisted by the check valve \V seated at the discharge opening communicating with the bottom of the casing C and the alarm mechanism. The spring to of (say) five or ten pounds pressure takes up this remaining portion of the hammer-blow that is not received by the shelf V and the mouth of the pipe extension U, and thus maintains the alarm check safe from the influence of the water hammer. The cross-sectional area of the passages traversed by the water from the pipe A to the alarm check, is gradually increased, and thus distributes the pressure over successively larger area, hence correspondingly reducing its intensitythat is, the pipe eX- tension U discharges into the air chamber of (say) four times its area; and the area of the passage closed by the break check is larger than the area of the annular neck portion T delivering the shock thereto.

It will be noted that the extension U is carried above the discharge opening in the neck, and so close to the annular shelf as practically to deliver the water and also the shock of the water-hammer, above said shaft and directly into the air chamber. Thus, but

comparatively little of the hammer-blow finds its way down through the neck passage, but what does, is taken up by the said break check, the spring of which is proportioned according to the water pressure at the point supplied. It may even be found that the shock of the water-hammer is so far taken up by the air cushion, the shelf, and the mouth of the pipe extension, that it may be advisable to do away with the break check \V. To render the alarm check quite secure, however, it is preferred to employ the break check as previously described.

The top of the casing T is provided with an inlet or charging valve Y, consisting of a springseated valve stem 2 opening inward, and normally closing a screw-threaded nipple 3 to which may be attached an air pump, whereby the amount of air, and the cushioning effect, may be increased. A cap 4: covers this nipple. Should the valve leak, this cover may be closed by a rubber packing ring, as indicated. A pet-cock 5 for the casing is also shown at the side to facilitate the charging and discharging of the air chamber. Ordinarily, however, sufficient air remains in the pipes to charge the air chamber T. Thus it will be seen that a very sensitive alarm mechanism is provided which may be used either on a pipe system in which the Water is free from shocks, or may be applied to a system in which the water-hammer is large and frequent; that in the latter case the guard for the alarm check is provided by pneumatic and mechanical cushions which take up the shocks of the water-hammer and prevent its affecting the alarm mechanism; and that such construction and arrangement for providing these pneumatic and mechanical cushions are simple, effective, and founded on scientific principles.

I am not aware that such acombiued check and air chamber has ever before been employed in this connection,and I therefore lay broad claim to the same, and do not limit myself to the exact construction and arrangement herein shown and described.

It will also be observed that this combined check and air chamberdoes not interfere with maintaining the water pressure in the pipe system to which it is attached, and that the break check will be thrown backward and open the passage for the flow of water past the alarm mechanism to the system connected with the pipe B, whenever the pressure is relieved in the pipe B from any causethat is to say, that the combined check and air chamber will not interfere with the supply of water in full quantity to the pipe B and its connections whenever required; but the troublesome false alarms due to the sudden fluctuations of water pressure, are done away with; furthermore, that a sensitive alarm mechanism may be employed in a system subject to such fluctuations, but protected therefrom, as before described.

Having thus fully described myinvention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-== 1. In an alarm mechanism, a casing having a valve seat, a check valve therefor having a hub at one side with a cam projection and rotatingly mounted on a transverse axis at one side of the seat, an alarm device, and operative connections between said cam hub within the casing and the alarm device outside.

2. In an alarm device, the combination with a casing and a check valve mounted therein having a cam hub, of a spring-controlled pin passing through said casing to engage said cam hub and having a valvular flange to prevent leakage, a contact spring and button normally separated, and an alarm device electrically connected to said spring and button whereby said alarm is actuated by closing the circuit through the operation of said check valve.

3. In an alarm device,the combination with avalve casing and a check valve having a cam hub mounted therein, of a chambered plug mounted in said casing, a spring-controlled contact pin mounted in said plugand adapted to be engaged by the said cam hub at one end, contact pieces at the other end normally open, an alarm device electrically connected to said contact pieces respectively and adapted to be operated when the circuit is closed thereby.

4. The combination with an alarm mechanism, operated by water pressure, and a supply pipe leading thereto, of a combined check and air chamber interposed between said alarm mechanism and supply pipe, to guard the former from the fluctuations of pressure in the latter.

5. The combination with an alarm 1nechanism operated by water pressure, and a supply pipe leading thereto, of an interposed air chamber having an inward shelf below the air cushion to check the flow of the re-acting water under fluctuations of pressure, and an inlet pipe extension from said supply pipe to deliver the water above said shelf.

6. The combination with an alarm check take up the remaining fluctuations of water pressure.

'7. A closed casing adapted to contain a cushion of air at the top, provided with a lateral water discharge opening near its lower end, and an inlet opening having a pipe extension upward beyond said discharge opening, an annular shelf or shoulder near the upper end of said pipe extension, projecting inward to form an opening of nearly the same area as the mouth of said extension, and providing an annular passage to the lower portion and discharge opening of the casing, whereby substantially all the reaction of the water under pressure-fluctuations, will be received by said shelf or shoulder and mouth of said extension, to prevent transmission beyond said discharge openin 8. The combination with a casing having a valve seat, and an alarm check mounted therein, and suitable operative connections therefor, of a supply pipe, and an interposed air chamber and break'check between said alarm check and supply pipe, the cross-sectional area of the communicating passage from the supply pipe to the alarm check being increased at available points, in order to diminish the intensity of water pressure and rapidity of its flow through said passage.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT F. CARPENTER.

\Vitnesses:

G. H. TALMAGE, H. M. PLAIsTED. 

